No slow down in US shipments of 2,000lb bombs to Israel
The US has sent over 27,000 bombs to Israel since the genocide on Palestinians in Gaza began
The US has sent Israel over 27,000 bombs since the start of its horrific aerial assault on Gaza in October, Reuters reported on 29 June, including 14,000 highly destructive 2,000-lb bombs that US officials have acknowledged as "inappropriate" for Israel to use.
Reuters stated that the US military had transferred at least 14,000 of the MK-84 2,000-lb bombs, 6,500 500-lb bombs, 3,000 Hellfire precision-guided air-to-ground missiles, 1,000 bunker-buster bombs, 2,600 air-dropped small-diameter bombs, and other munitions, according to US officials who were not authorized to speak publicly.
A recent US shipment of bombs to Israel was allegedly delayed due to the inclusion of 2,000-lb bombs within it. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video harshly criticizing the White House for the delay.
A US official told Axios the White House's "main concern from day one was the Israeli use of the 2,000-lb bombs in Gaza, which the administration thought was inappropriate."
In October, Israel dropped a 2,000-lb bomb in the center of the crowded Jabaliya refugee camp, killing some 120 people.
However, Reuters notes that the totals suggest "no significant drop-off in U.S. military support for its ally," despite the recent White House "decision to pause a shipment of powerful bombs."
Experts told Reuters the size and contents of the shipments are sufficient for Israel to replenish weapons it has used in its eight-month bombing campaign, which has ruined much of Gaza, turning vast swathes into a "moonscape."
In late April, Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor estimated that Israel had dropped approximately 70,000 tons of bombs on Gaza since the start of the war, an amount far surpassing the US and allied bombing of Dresden, Hamburg, and London combined during World War II.
Israeli leaders say that major combat operations in Gaza are winding down and that they are now shifting troops and resources to fight against the Lebanese resistance movement, Hezbollah, on the northern front.
While the US provides detailed descriptions and quantities of military aid sent to Ukraine to fight Russia, the White House has revealed few details about the full extent of US weapons and munitions sent to Israel, Reuters added.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has led the effort to supply bombs to Israel that have slaughtered over 37,000 Palestinians, the majority women and children.
In January, 19 Democratic lawmakers called the Blinken's decision to unilaterally approve two emergency weapons sales to Israel without congressional approval "highly unusual."